Seniors self-defense with a little cane scrutiny

Some elderly think they're too old, too weak, too passive, and just too ripe for a mugging to prevent an attack.

Not so, explains self-defense instructor Rob Wilson, who basically carries a slogan wherever he goes: Have cane, will travel.

Wilson and usually his wife, Cat, go anywhere anyone wants them to teach seniors how to defend themselves with a simple walking cane, including ongoing Tuesday mid-day classes at the Florence Douglas Senior Center in Vallejo.

From the "seven-strike" reply to a mugger's advances to a simple hook around the knee, Wilson made believers of the 20 students at a recent 12:45 to 1:45 p.m. class inside the center's cafeteria.

"I've been 'that far' from a few encounters in Vallejo and I think this is fantastic," said Les Moffet, 77, believing the classes would serve him well even if he doesn't have to face a bad situation for years.

"When it happens, it's going to come out of the blue," Moffet said. "You're going to act on instinct. And if any of this rubs off, you'll probably be astounded what you did."

Sure, said Moffet, some of the seniors may only remember bits and pieces from the classes, "but if it works, it'll save them. You don't want to hit that pavement, especially when you're old."

Two 85-year-old friends -- Mildred James and Frances Shaffer -- walked away from the class feeling confident they could defend themselves if necessary.

"I think it's very beneficial to women our age. It's helping us be aware of our surroundings," Shaffer said. "I never realized I could do so much with a cane."

"I think it's fantastic," added James. "I don't need a cane right now, but I will if I live that long. I think the class is advantageous to everyone."

If nothing else, it was good to "know how to cane your cane" if it needed to turn into a weapon, James noted.

"That's the main thing I learned," she said. "I had no idea how the different areas of a cane would affect another person in a different way."

Manny Miranda, 86, called the class "very informative. A lot of stuff I already knew, but it was sort of a refresher course. I wish I took this course 20 years ago but 20 years ago I thought I was too old. I walk in Vallejo every day and you have to be prepared."

The free class has been quite successful, said Nancy Yingst, activity and outreach coordinator at the center.

"People here feel they can have some empowerment" after the lesson, Yingst said. "They won't feel so vulnerable as a senior."

After each new move, Wilson had the 20 participants take turns repeating the move on a padded "suspect."

"If they're coming after you, break the ankle," he said. "Now they're coming after you with a limp. If they keep coming, break the other ankle. Now they can't walk."

Sure, Wilson said, even if a student remembers the "seven-step" format, it's unlikely all seven hits will connect. No matter.

"It only takes one or two hits to bring a person down if you do it properly," he said. "It doesn't take much."

Basically, said Wilson, "the bone does not win when it comes to the cane."

One key, he told his audience, is to keep the suspect off balance.

"Do not stand still and be a target," he said. "If you lose your balance, you lose your fight. Move around. If he doesn't know what you're doing or where you're going, you have him confused and that's what you want."

There is an advanced cane defense course but it's not taught to seniors, Wilson said.

"We're older. Our bones are more brittle," he said. "I can't pick you and throw you over my shoulder. You can't do that in this class."

What the seniors can do is protect his or herself with one swipe of the cane, or a poke in the gut, or a bash to the left and right side of the face.

"It doesn't take much strength," Wilson reiterated. "It doesn't take much to hurt a person and put him down."

It's all about getting that one chance, Wilson said, "and if you've got it, make it count."

Wilson starting teaching the Cane-Doh class three years ago after his wife had a "situation" in a parking lot and took the course.

Both Wilsons took up martial arts and earned a third-degree black belt.

"We go around teaching classes where they want us," Wilson said.

Though self-defense for seniors is a serious topic, Wilson -- and the students -- do share some laughs.

During one go-round at the dummy, one man showed his upper body strength in whacking the pads.